PRESIDENT of the Sickle Cell Support Foundation of Jamaica (SCSFJ) Camille Daley says discrimination is becoming more prevalent among people living with sicle cell disease (SCD) as they are being turned away from jobs or labelled as drug addicts for requesting pain medication.

Pointing to the stigma in health facilities, Daley told the Jamaica Observer that medical personnel in public health-care system often question the constant request from sickle cell patients for medication.

“Sometimes some of the nurses in the public hospitals often accuse persons with sickle cell of being addicted to pain medication,” said Daley on Monday, as Jamaica and the rest of the world celebrated World Sickle Cell Day.

“Oftentimes, they may not want to give them treatment. Even sometimes when the doctors have prescribed the pain medication, the nurses would say to them, ‘You’re always here, always seeking medication, nothing is wrong with you’. That still exists as a problem,” she said.

Daley also noted that some people with the disease might be given the opportunity to do an interview for a job, but after mentioning the illness, they are robbed of the chance of being hired.

“Sometimes in the workplaces, persons will have the qualifications and will be called in for interview. If they mention in the interview that they have sickle cell, they will often experience a change in attitude. The interviewer will stop asking about their qualifications, or start saying to them, ‘Really you have sickle cell?’ You sure you can work?’,” she explained.

“So oftentimes, what seems like a sure thing that the interviewer was impressed with their qualification and experience, all of a sudden the employer seems uncertain and oftentimes the person does not get hired. Just a few weeks ago, I got a call about the same issue, so there is definitely discrimination in the labour market,” she added.

In the meantime, she said the foundation, which has a membership of approximately 70 people, needs more social and financial support in assisting those living with the disease.

The latest initiative was a sickle cell scholarship and bursaries project which saw four university students receiving $650,000 overall in academic support last year.

Prior to that project, a teachers’ guide was launched which focused on tips in dealing with children who have sickle cell disease.

In 2021, SCSFJ welcomed Cabinet’s decision to allow more people living with the disease to fill their prescriptions for free at public pharmacies.

The Government has estimated that it will cost approximately $36 million to introduce the change, with funding coming from the pharmaceutical budget of the Ministry of Health and Wellness.

“We are happy to hear that persons who attend the Sickle Cell Unit of the University Hospital of the West Indies will now be able to access care through the Drug Serv [public] pharmacies. Usually, they were treated like private patients, and many of the people who go to the unit they are very poor,” Daley had said at the time.